Wake County science teacher Melissa Hussain is speaking out on the recent controversy over Facebook comments about her students, the South and Christianty that created a national controversy.

In an op-ed column today, Hussain, writes that she had been reacting to the "disrepectful behavior" of her West Lake Middle students because of her desire to keep religion out of a discussion on evolution. Hussain, who previously declined to comment, said she's a Christian but her students began to spread rumors that she's Muslim or an atheist.

Hussain writes that she hadn't realized that Facebook had changed her privacy settings to make her account public, allowing her students to see the caustic comments that parents had complained about.

The damage has been done, but hopefully won't get worse, over the assumptions made by some people about the alleged religious affiliation of Wake County science teacher Melissa Hussain.

Some bloggers have assumed that Hussain's Facebook complaints about the behavior of Christian students in her class meant she's Muslim. But people are making that assumption based solely on her last name, which is her married name and not her maiden name.

Would people have assumed she's Muslim if she kept her maiden name of Blondun? The fact of the matter is that her religious affiliation, if she has one, is unknown.

Melissa Hussain, the teacher who got in trouble over comments on her Facebook page, has been moved out of the classroom and into the Wake County school system's central office.

As noted in today's article, Hussain was reassigned late last month to be the district's coordinating teacher for middle school science. The reassignment comes after Hussain had been suspended with pay for more than a month while the school district investigated complaints from parents.

Hussain had been an eighth-grade science teacher at West Lake Middle School until February. Parents had complained about comments such as her calling it a "hate crime" that students had left a Bible on her desk and that she wouldn't let the incident "go unpunished."

There's been a development in the case of Melissa Hussain, the eighth-grade science teacher at West Lake Middle School who was suspended over comments about her students, Christianity and the South on her Facebook page.

As noted in today's paper, the Wake County school system assigned a permanent teacher on Monday to cover her classes while the district continues its investigation. Subs had been covering for Hussain, who has been suspended with pay since Feb. 12.

It's uncertain how miuch longer the investigation will continue.

CORRECTED FACEBOOK LINK FOR HUSSAIN SUPPORT PAGE

Did an eighth-grade science teacher at West Lake Middle School go too far in the comments she and her friends made on a public section of her Facebook page?

As noted in today's article, Melissa Hussain has been suspended with pay during an investigation into complaints from parents and students about the Facebook comments. Copies of comments provided by parents before Hussain restricted access on her Facebook page show that it was a pretty tense environment.

"Today a student left a brand new bible on my desk with an anonymous card that said 'Merry Christmas; with 'Christ' underlined and bolded," Hussain wrote. "I can't believe the cruelty and ignorance of people sometimes."

I'll go into a lot more detail tomorrow but here's a story that might catch your interest.

Melissa Hussain, an eighth-grade teacher at West Lake Middle School in Apex, was suspended with pay Friday following complaints about disparaging comments she and her friends made about her class, Southern culture and Christianity on her Facebook page.